(UPDATED) Counting Ulster County

Republican Assemblyman George Amedore has a 724 vote lead over Democrat Cecilia Tkaczyk in the 46th Senate District.

According to Amedore spokesman Kris Thompson, the ongoing counting of absentee and affidavit ballots in Ulster County has netted Tkaczyk 196 votes. Amedore has gained 473 votes and Tkaczyk has gained 669, as the counting the towns of Kingston, Hurley and Esopus are finished and the city of Kingston is ongoing.

The paper ballots have broken about 58.6 percent in Tkaczyk's favor. On Election Day she won Esopus with about 54.5 percent of the vote, Hurley with 57.9 percent, the town of Kingston by 51.7 percent and the city of Kingston by 68.25 percent.

Overall in the county she won about 61 percent of the vote and likely needs to win a higher percentage of paper ballots than she did on Election Day. A higher percentage has been made especially important in light of the revelation that the Ulster County Board of Elections ruled almost half the affidavit ballots ineligible, which shrunk the size of potential votes to grab from.

UPDATE, 5:50 p.m: The percentage of paper ballots won by Tkaczyk so far is a lower percentage than her Election Day totals for approximately the same areas.

On Election Day, Tkaczyk won about 59 percent of the votes cast in the first half the city of Kingston and the towns of Esopus, Hurley and Kingston. She is currently about half a percentage point below that mark with the paper counted so far from these areas.

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